It took a legal battle lasting more than two years for Tanja Vidovic to return to her job as a Tampa firefighter in early April. But after only three months back at Tampa Fire Rescue, her future at the department is in doubt again. Vidovic, who won a federal discrimination and retaliation lawsuit against the department in December, is now accused of being untruthful and creating a hostile work environment, her husband Jared Vidovic told the Tampa Bay Times.
- PUB DATE: 8/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Tampa Tribune and TBO.com

A recent fatal house fire in Bartonville drew attention to a little known but vital system of inter-agency agreements that help firefighters get help when they need it. Mutual aid is nothing new. Most people know that if a fire is too big, a department will call in reinforcements or backups. But how those additional resources are called and in what order remains a mystery to most people not involved in firefighting.
- PUB DATE: 8/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Peoria Journal Star

Las Vegas Paramedic/Firefighter Matthew Driscoll knew he had transported human trafficking victims in an ambulance. So when an injury forced him into light duty, he had an idea about how to spend that time: he started working on a training program to help first responders, hospital employees, counselors and social workers recognize signs they were encountering trafficking victims.
- PUB DATE: 8/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Las Vegas Review-Journal

The Riverside Fire Authority is seeking to recoup a six-figure amount in lost revenue from a discrepancy over levy collection, and it’s breaking new legal ground with a lawsuit against Lewis County and the Washington State Department of Revenue. At issue is whether levy limits — state laws governing the amount of property taxes that can be collected for a given levy — can be ignored when correcting a previous “underlevy,” a year in which the taxing authority failed to collect the proper amount from taxpayers.
- PUB DATE: 8/2/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Centralia Chronicle

At Columbia Heights Elementary School on Wednesday, police and firefighters knocked open doors, searched for gunmen, and rushed to save the lives of victims. The smell and blast of gunpowder gave the scene the scent and sound of a real gunfight. But it wasn’t real. It was one of many scenarios during a six-day active shooter training session, which police and fire personnel used to test their inter-department communication and readiness for one of the worst kinds of calls they can receive.
- PUB DATE: 8/1/2018 10:29:57 PM - SOURCE: Longview Daily News